"The Greatest Ideas are the Simplest"

Author's note:  This is a long espresso-driven vignette with a book tie-in at the end.  

Saturday was a cool, crisp autumn day with a few yellow and orange leaves hanging on.  It was a perfect day for a hike so a friend and I decided to tackle a path which has been described as "The Grand Canyon of the South".  I've met a few people who had recently done the walk, and it was billed to be an approximately six hour hike with ~3.5 miles each way and an elevation change of 1,000 feet.  Totally doable and a perfectly peaceful way to begin the weekend.  

The first tip that this hike might not be the idealistic zen journey I had pictured was in the gravel parking lot.  Boy Scout Troops #Y was in the house. (We'll preserve their identity as minors.)  We also noticed pretty early that we were the only pair in (layered) running gear.  (This would later turn out to be an advantage.)  The journey down included a few switchbacks and we passed several couples and families who were taking it easy, but predominately the only sound was the crunch of leaf underfoot and the odd leaf blowing (tayin') in the wind.  Nice.

As we neared the 2.5 mile mark, voices were heard nearby.  Yelling , laughing, and the typical noises of youth rising so we suspected we were nearing a campground with the Troops.  As we approached the last narrow trek to the crevasse, the cacophony rose to a peak and we could see the Troops assembling in a little brown line spackled with various arm badges.  It was time for a split second call:  run to get ahead of these 40 boys or follow them to the end of the track (~half mile or so).  It seems an easy call, right?

So we ran and I sprinted over rocks with my best impression of a gazelle.  We were at the front of the pack headed toward the Walls.  In just a few short minutes, this decision was soon realized to be a gross error.  Underestimating the ferocity of youth and the sugar high that comes from too many energy bars for breakfast, they were quickly on our tail and the next 20 minutes was spent climbing over rocks in a single line formation with such varied topics at my shoulder to include these remarks:

• Coach's nicknames was Sunshine when he was in [redacted].
•    No it wasn't. Yes it was. [repeat 10 times.]
• The sun does not rotate. Gravity and time are not related.
• We're going to start a business selling souvenirs from [current site]. Who wants to run it? Call it! [insert long, drawn-out reverse countdown by a breaking voice here]

Luckily the area at the end of the trail was wide, so any adult not in the company of a 10-12 year old khaki or green pants kid took a break on the rocks until they soaked up nature and left.  

Quiet.  

The sound of babbling brooks and aging bones climbing rock.  This was the trip I expected.

The journey back began in this same tone with the sound of falling water to accompany the initial walk.  I even didn't mind getting passed by an oldie.  It was peaceful.

We trekked by the boy scout camp and it seemed they were starting to assemble lunch and/or napping.  The coast was clear for the rest of the journey.  The transition to upward descent is marked by crossing a creek with a "bridge" made from half a tree.  It was at this point we saw the group on the other side.  The scouts!  Apparently there had been two groups, and these were the 20 or so that were hiking out together (in red shirts).  We'd learned our lesson and slowly walked behind them.  Easy enough...slow pace and fairly quiet since we were behind the adult leaders.

After ten minutes or so, they noticed our presence and halted the Troop so we could pass.  [Um, thanks.] We made our way to the head of the line with the kids following.  Did I mention they had six foot poles to assist their climb?  Did I mention they were still running and despite the uphill climb one particular child still had the vocal capacities to continually proclaim he wanted to be first?  Their presence just behind me and the sound that their bamboo poles made when striking rock as they were hiking left me thinking of only one book....Lord of the Flies.  

I could barely keep my speed up the hill for laughing (and being slightly afraid).  Luckily, the troop leaders needed frequently breaks so we were able to pull ahead with my heart nicely in tact.  Despite the extended lunch stop and photo shoots, we made the round trip in four hours.

Hope your weekend has a fun book reference (sans drumming)!